The term “peristaltic pump” is used herein to describe a type of positive displacement pump for pumping liquids, gas, or combination thereof. The most common peristaltic pumps utilize a pump housing having a rotating rotor with rollers attached circumferentially that turn compressing a resilient tube. The invention establishes a peristaltic pump configuration whereas the roller slidingly engages a recess in rotor, hereinafter referred to as a “step,” causing occluding of the resilient tube inducing a fluid flow therein. Distinctively, the invention uses a cylindrical type member, hereinafter referred to as a “roller,” uniquely traveling over a resilient tube causing compression forcing liquid through the tube. To augment the utilization of the roller, the rotor body step allows the roller to both freely rotate and maintain squeezing pressure along the resilient tube. So as a powering means causes the rotor to rotate, the roller moves along the resilient tube with the resilient tube undergoing both compression and returning to its original state as with resilient tubes with all types of peristaltic pumps.
There is an abundance of commercially available peristaltic pump types. The majority of these peristaltic pumps are complicated and require many parts working in combination to facilitate pumping in comparison to the invention being disclosed.
Unlike the invention, the prior art does not incorporate a free rolling roller that during rotor rotation wedges against the inclination of the rotor step subsequently squeezing against the resilient tube. An example of a current roller peristaltic pump is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,494,692 to Green. The Green peristaltic pump incorporates fixed rollers to facilitate flow through a resilient tube.
Another example similar of a conventional roller peristaltic pump is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,478,999 to Limoges. The Limoges peristaltic pump again incorporates fixed rollers to facilitate flow through a resilient tube. Just as the Green patent, Limoges does not incorporate the abovementioned features of the invention and requires numerous parts to facilitate flow through a resilient tube.